Eagle Pass Eagles claw C. C. Winn Mavericks 27-7 in 9th Annual City Football Championship
By: Ricardo E. Calderon, Copyright 2014, Eagle Pass Business Journal, Inc.
The visiting Eagle Pass High School Eagles clawed cross-town rival C. C. Winn High School Mavericks 27-7 in the Ninth Annual City Football Championship on Friday, September 12, 2014, at the Eagle Pass Independent School District Cozel Foster-Veterans Memorial Stadium, extending their City Football Championship streak to nine consecutive years.
A sellout crowd at the EPISD Cozel Foster-Veterans Memorial Stadium enjoyed the traditional City Football Championship game, also known as The Menudo Bowl, between the C. C. Winn Mavericks and Eagle Pass Eagles as both teams exhibited outstanding sportsmanship and competition.
The Mavericks received the opening game kick-off and fumbled the football but luckily recovered their own fumble. The Eagles stout defense led by linebackers R.J. Valdez, Mando Lopez, and Mike Montalvo stifled the Mavericks offensive tandem of standout Quarterback Juan Elizondo and Tailback Deion Alonso, forcing the Mavericks to punt the football.
The Eagles offensive machine led by standout Quarterback Ty Chisum and Tailback Mark Venegas was stymied by the Mavericks stingy defense led by linebackers Chris Aranda and Ryan Pike during the Eagles first possession, forcing the Eagles to punt the football.
Both teams struggled during the first quarter exchanging possessions again until the Eagles offense started a drive at the Mavericks own 42 yard line with 1:54 minutes remaining in the first period. The Eagles combined their ground attack led by Quarterback Ty Chisum and Mark Venegas marching down the Foster-Veterans Memorial Stadium turf, culminating in a 16 yard touchdown keeper by Quarterback Ty Chisum and Eagles place kicker Gonzalo Martinez point after attempt was good to give the visiting Eagles an early 7-0 lead with 10:50 remaining in the second quarter.
The mighty Eagles defense led by offensive linemen Jesus Fernandez, Christian Maldonado, Joey Soto, and Luis Mendez shut down the explosive Mavericks offensive attack during the Mavericks next possession, forcing the Mavericks to attempt a 45 yard field goal attempt by place-kicker Dante Valdez as the kick was long-enough but sailed wide left of the goal post.
The Eagles took over possession at their own 27 yard line with 7:14 minutes remaining in the second quarter. On the very first play from scrimmage, Eagles Tailback Mark Venegas burst through a seam of the line of scrimmage and exploded the Mavericks defense for a dazzling 63 yard touchdown run and the extra point was good, giving the Eagles a 14-0 lead over the Mavericks with 7:06 minutes left in the second period.
Both teams’ defenses dominated each other’s offenses during the remainder of the second quarter, giving the Eagles a 14-0 lead at half-time.
During half-time, both Mavericks Head Coach Eric Villasenor and Eagles Head Coach Tom Gonzalez spoke to their players and advise them of the adjustments needed to be implemented and executed in the second-half of play.
The Eagles received the opening kick-off in the third quarter but the thundering Mavericks defense led by defensive linemen Walter Montoya and Jesus Barrientos together with defensive backs Jonathan Villarreal, Michael Santillano, and Eric Vasquez stopped the potent Eagles offense, forcing a punt. Similarly, the high-flying Eagles defense led by defensive backs DeShawn Franklin, Jesse Mata, and Ty Chisum stalled the quick scoring Mavericks offense, forcing a punt with 9:40 remaining in the third period.
The Eagles offense engineered a long 85 yard touchdown drive midway through the third quarter culminating on a 18 yard touchdown keeper by Quarterback Ty Chisum and the point after attempt was good, giving the Eagles a commanding lead of 21-0 with 5:17 remaining in the third quarter.
The never say die Mavericks responded with a well-executed 67 yard touchdown drive early in the fourth quarter resulting in Quarterback Juan Elizondo scoring on a one yard keeper and the point after attempt by place kicker Dante Valdez was good, narrowing the score to 21-7 with 10:35 minutes remaining in the fourth period.
The Eagles fumbled the football on their next possession and Mavericks linebacker Ryan Pike recovered the football giving the Mavericks excellent field position at the Eagles 16 yard line with 10:25 minutes remaining in the game as the Mavericks Nation football aficionados sensed a change of momentum in the game. The stingy Eagles defense rose to the occasion one more time suffocating the Mavericks offense backwards and preserving the Eagles 21-7 lead midway through the fourth quarter, forcing the Mavericks to punt.
The lethal Eagles offense switched tailbacks on its next possession with standout Tailback DeShawn Franklin carrying the football resulting in a 33 yard touchdown run into the Mavericks end zone and the extra point was blocked, increasing the Eagles lead 27-7 with 5:06 minutes remaining in the game.
The Mavericks offense was unable to score any further points against the dominant Eagles defense in the game with a final score of 27-7 in favor of the Eagles. The loyal Eagles fans cheered in celebration of the Eagles clinching the Ninth Annual City Football Championship as the time clock expired.
The Eagle Pass Business Journal congratulates both the Mavericks and Eagles for playing an outstanding game and with great character and sportsmanship and wishes both teams the best of luck in their 2014 season.
The Mavericks are off next week before starting District 29-5A action against the San Antonio Southside High School Cardinals on Friday, September 26th, at 7:30 P.M. at home during Parents Night. The Mavericks fall to 1-2 overall in the season.
The Eagles play the San Antonio John Jay High School Mustangs next week on Thursday, September 18th, at 7 P.M. at San Antonio Northside Independent School District Gustafson Stadium. The Eagles improve to 3-0 overall in the season.
